Cycling star Ryder Hesjedal back for the Tour of Alberta

Canada’s Ryder Hesjedal, leading a breakaway during the fourteenth stage of the 102nd edition of the Tour de France on Saturday, is one of the cyclists who may opt to compete in the 2015 Tour of Alberta.

Photograph by: ERIC FEFERBERG, AFP/Getty Images

Canadian cycling star Ryder Hesjedal is coming back to compete in the Tour of Alberta that runs from Sept. 2-7.

Hesjedal, 34, who won the 2012 Giro d’Italia and finished fifth in that race this year, is a marquee rider for the Cannondale-Garmin cycling team. For years now, he has been a factor in the biggest cycling road races, including the Tour de France, where he finished seventh in 2010.

Hesjedal competed in the Tour of Alberta in 2013, but was absent last year owing to other commitments. This year, for the first time, the Tour features two mountain stages, an enticement for Hesjedal, who is considered one of the strongest climbers on the European pro cycling circuit. He’s coming here to try to to win the race, make no mistake.

This years’s race includes a stage from Grande Cache to Miette Hot Springs and another one that finishes at the Marmot Basin ski area in Jasper, race segments that will showcase the Rockie Mountains on worldwide TV.

“I have a lot of connections to Alberta through family and friends,” said Hesjedal, a native of Victoria, B.C. “I was proud to be at the inaugural edition in 2013 and I can’t wait for this year’s exciting route with the mountain finishes in Jasper, which suit my strengths.”

This year’s tour begins in Grande Prairie with a team time trial, followed by a stage race in Grande Prairie County. Following the two mountain stages, the race rolls toward Edmonton, with a stage from Edson to Spruce Grove, followed by the finale, a circuit race in downtown Edmonton.

Canada’s Ryder Hesjedal, leading a breakaway during the fourteenth stage of the 102nd edition of the Tour de France on Saturday, is one of the cyclists who may opt to compete in the 2015 Tour of Alberta.

Photograph by: ERIC FEFERBERG, AFP/Getty Images

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